Method of condensing volatile metals.



W. McA. JOHNSON. METHOD OF CONDBNSING VOLATILE MET APPLICATION FILED JAN. 8, 190B.

Patentgd Oct. 27, 1908.

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4 I n H1: 8. 6 THAI .1 M1fi the metallic zinc va PATENT OFFICE.

WOOLSEY MCA. JOHNSON, or HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT.

METHOD OF OONDENSING VOLA'IILE METALS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 27, 1908.

Application filed January 8, 1908 I Serial No. 409,861.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WOOLSEY MCA. JOHN- soN, a citizenof the United States, residing at Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Condensing Volatile Metals, of which the following is a specification. I

This invention relates broadly to the art of condensing metallic vapors, but more specifically it concerns an improved method of condensing zinc va ors whereby li uid or solid zinc may be easi y obtained on a highly economical basis.

One object of this invention is to provide a commercially practicable method of rapidly c'ondensing metallic zinc vapor in conjunction with very simple and inexpensive a paratus; which method and apparatus are 0 a nature permitting their 0 eration by relatively inexperience and uns illed workmen. a

In general, this invention seeks to rovide a process of the nature disclosed whic from the standpoint of commercial practice, will possess a 'gh degree of efliciency and which will be of the greatest possible simplicity consonant with the results obtained;

Other objects and advantages will be in part obvious from the annexed drawings,

and in part pointed out in the following .de-

scription.

It is well known that the condensation of K or evolved from reduction furnaceshas hltherto resented many difliculties in practice. T us, should the temperature oi the condensing chambers and contents be too low, a commercially satisfactory percentage of the zinc vapor 1 not deposit in the form of molten metal, but will in large part be de osited in the form of fume or so-called b ue powder, which re- -quires a further treatment in order to be .brought into a commercially available product. On the other hand, should the temperature be-too hi h, the metallic zinc vapor will fail to con ense .with commercially economical rapidity and an undue percentage of such vapor ma altogether escape condensation in the con ensi chamber and may be lost or deposited as a me in a more remote portion of the apparatus. I have, however, discovered certain conditions under which a substantially densatic" f metallic vapors may rapidly com l'ete con-' eflected. That is to say, my investigations have shown that by contacting the metallic vapors with a relatively large surface of molten metal having a relatively low vapor pressure, thereby the transformation of the metallic vapors into liquid form may be greatly facilitated and the flow or reactlon velocity from the one condition to the other will be greatly promoted. By properly controlling the temperatures and masses, after the vmanner herein disclosed, the molten metal will be found to have a maximum aflinity for the vaporous metal, and the condensation will proceed rapidly and may be rendered substantially complete.

By employing the molten metal in such form that it will expose a very considerable surface at low vapor pressure and by bringing the same into intimate contact with metallic vapor whose pressure is'high, there will be a rapid flow from the high pressure to the low pressure ('5. a,- a condensation). Under these and other conditions of my process, I am enabled to properly condense an extremely large quantity of zinc vapor notwithstanding that the cubic capacity of and Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional e ovation of the same taken in the plane of line 2-2 of Fig l.

he condensing structed in suitab e size and shape of any desired material, as the masonry 2, and preferably, though not necessarily, may be provided in or adjacent its lower end with a metallic collecting reservoir or basin 3 for receiving the condensed metal. The metallic vapors from the reduction furnace or other source are introduced into the condensing chamber by means of a flue 4 leading into the upper part of said chamber. The residual vapors and fixed gases are enabled to escape through the'outlet 5, and for the purpose of collecting any blue powder or other valuable constituents, a prolong vent 7 for the fixed gases may be in commumcation with the outlet 5.

To the end that the a aratus and collecting basin may be i'niti y heated, or mamvery 6 having a discharge carry out my rocess;

chamber 1 maybe con 4 t1vely quiescent provided flues 9 and may provide one or more receptacles which preferably assume the form and function of the flues designated by 11. These flues 11 may be conveniently shaped in cross section in the form of a hollow rectangle provided with upwardly extending'marginal ribs 12, or otherwise recessed or constructed to receive and retain in the form of a shallow pool or film quantities of molten metal.

A further feature of advantage which 1 have adopted in this apparatus resides in so arranging the flues or shelves as the case may from one flue to the other, thereby providing a diflerent but yet efficient exposure of the molten metal to the metallic vapors. To this end, the transverse flues 11 are preferably staggered in the manner indicated so that the mcoming gases may be not only brought into intimate contact with the relasurface of the receptacles, but Wlll also be compelled to thoroughly in-. filtrate through the shower of molten zinc. In order that the metal flowing over and showering from one receptacle to another may be maintained within definite and some- What restricted limits of temperature, I have 10 for heated gases or other fluids within or adjacent opposite sides of the condensing chamber and communicating with the transverse flues 11.. To the end that an artificial circulation of molten metal may be maintained in the condensing chamber either during the initial stages of the process or during the normal workings thereof, as the case may be, I provide means forintroducing molten metal to the uppermost, and if desired to intermediary flues, and likewise, I provide means for withdrawing the molten metal from other flues or from the collecting basin. Thus, as shown on the drawings, the uppermost flue or flues 11 may be extended beyond one of the condenser walls as shown at 14 in such manner as to provide an external trough or canal communicating with the interior metal-retaining approximately 1100 tity of molten metal by artificial circulation may Wall 15 or its equivalent, serving as a seal to prevent dilution or escape of the gaseous conl above construction and many a hrmtmg 17, by any suitable type of mechanical con-- veyer, by ,a rotary pump working at high erlpaperatures, or equlvalent constructions.

y process may be carried out as follows:

The vapors may bederived as usual from a suitable reduction or volatilizing furnace, which, however, in this case may be of a relatively large ca acity. These vapors enter the condenser t rough the flue 4 and flow downwardly therethrough. When employed for condensing vapors will enter the chamber at a temperature of (1., the gases passing through the flues 9 and 11 will preferably be given a temperature range of from 450 to be that the metal may overflow and shower 700 C. This will ordinarily suffice to maintain the molten metal within the condensing chamber at a proper temperature relative to that of the zinc vapor to be condensed. At the start of the process the condenser will preferably be provided with suitable quanextraneously intro ducing the same upon the upper range oi flues 11 and ermitting it to shower from flue to flue ing the receptacles of all the flues. At this stage, collecting basin 3 may molten state and at the a It wi be maintained in n. a pro er temperature by plication of heat rom the burner 8. be understood that a mechanical or be thus maintained and that such circulation may be greatly augmented and at times supplanted by the condensation of considerable amounts of the metallic vapor. That is to say, under pro conditions of normal workin the metalln; vapors may condense so rapi ly and in such uantities as to maintain the drip flow or SIOWGI' of molten metal from flue to flue, thereby automatically providing relatively large surfaces of molten metal at proper temperatures within the condensing chamber and in intimate contact with the vapors to be condensed. Should, however, the condensation be not sufliciently rapid for this purpose, or in caseuncondensed metallic vapors should be found to escape from the condenser, it will be'desirable increase the circulation in the mannr above indicated.

As many changes could be made in the 'parently widely different embodiments of t is invention could be made without departin from the scope thereof, it is intended that a l matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a sense.

I claim:

1. The method of condensing volatile the metal Within th to mechanically of metallic z inc, which .metal, -mass of the molten metal in contact with the vapors to secure substantially complete con- 2. The method of condensing volatile' metals which consists in bringing metallic vapors into contact with metal, and regulating the mass of the molten metal in contact with the vapors to secure substantially complete condensation of said vapors.

3. The method of condensing volatile metals which consists in bringing metallic vapors into contact'with a body of molten and regulating the temperature and densation of'said vapors.

4. The method of condensing metallic vapors which consists'in exposing said vapors .which consists in establishing a flow of to a relativelylarge surface of a circulating molten metal.

5. The method of condensing metallic vapors which consists in exposing said vapors to a relatively large surface of a circulating molten metal and maintaining said metal at a temperature such that its vapor pressure is materially less than that of said metallic vapor.

6. The method of condensing metallic vapors consisting in exposing a metallic vapor to a shower of molten metal.

7. The method of condensing metallic vapors which consists in simultaneously ex-.

posin said vapors to a relatively large horizonta surface of a circulating molten metal and to a shower of said metal.

8. The method of condensing metallic vaors which consists in simultaneously exposmg said vapors to a-relatively quiescent surface and to a shower of a molten metal, and

withdrawing the excess of molten metal formed by the condensation of said vapors.

9. The method of condensing metallic vapors consisting in exposing a metallic vapor to a plurality of relatively quiescent surfaces of a circulating molten metal and simulta neously exposing saidvapor to a shower of molten metal.

- 10 The method of con densing volatile .metals vwhich consists in establishing a flow of molten metal between' condensing surfaces and condensin vapors of the same metal b contact wit the molten metal.-

11. T e :method of condensing volatile a body of molten 12 The method of condensing volatile.

metals "which consists in providing a plurality of independent bodies of'molten metal within a condensing chamber, maintaining a flow of metal between said bodies and condensing vapors. of the same metal by contact with the molten metal.

13. The method of condensing v'olatile metals which consists in providing a plurality of independent bodies of'molten metal within a condensing chamber, maintaining a flow of metal between said bodies in the form of a freely-falling stream, and condensing va ors of the same metal by contact with the mo ten metal.

14. The method of condensing zinc vapolis mo ten zinc between condensing surfaces, and condensing zinc vapors by contact with the molten metal.

15. The method of condensing zinc which consists in re atedly circulating a body of molten 'zinc etween condensing surfaces,

and condensing zinc vapors by contact with the molten metal.

16. The method of condensing zinc which consists'in providing a plurality of independent bodies of molten zinc within a condensing chamber, maintaining a flow of zinc between said bodies, and condensing zinc vapors by contact with the molten metal.

17. The method of condensing zinc which consists in providing a plurality of independent bodies of molten zinc within'a condensing chamber, maintaining .a flow of zinc between said bodies in the form of a freely-falling stream, and condensing zinc vapors by contact with the molten metal.

18. The method of condensing volatilized metals which consists in conducting metallic vapors into presence of a body of the same metal in a molten state, and regulating the ex osed surface of molten metal to secure a su stantially complete condensation of the ors.

n testimony whereof, I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

' WOOLSEY McA. JOHNSON. Witnesses:

Cms. H. Bnrscon, Gno. B. Trnmn.

1 Oil 

